The Soul of John Black | |
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Genres | soul, blues, rock |
Years active | 2002 | –present
Labels | Yellow Dog Records |
Associated acts | Fishbone Miles Davis Everlast Joshua Redman Betty Carter |
Website | Official |
Members | John Bigham |
Past members | Christopher Thomas |
The Soul of John Black is an American alternative soul, blues, and rock persona created by John Bigham.
John Bigham was previously a member of the band Fishbone and also worked with Miles Davis and Everlast, while Christopher Thomas who was only a member for the first official record as well as the self-released sessions, had played with Joshua Redman and Betty Carter. [1] The first release was a self-titled album which was issued in 2002. A different self-titled release arrived in 2003 on the No Mayo label and featured a blend of soul, funk, and hip hop. NPR named the track "Scandalous (No. 9)" one of the best of the year in All Songs Considered. [2] By the release of the follow-up in 2007, Bigham was recording alone and essentially used the group as his own stage name. The sophomore release, The Good Girl Blues, focused on the blues but continued to incorporate elements from jazz, hip hop, rock & roll, and other styles. [3] A third album, Black John, followed in 2009. [4] [5]
The Soul of John Black's The Good Girl Blues was nominated for the Seventh Annual Independent Music Awards for Blues Album of the year.
Trip hop is a musical genre that originated in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom, especially Bristol. It has been described as "a fusion of hip hop and electronica until neither genre is recognizable", and may incorporate a range of styles, including funk, dub, soul, psychedelia, R&B, and house, as well as other forms of electronic music. Trip hop can be highly experimental.
De La Soul is an American hip hop trio formed in 1988 in the Amityville area of Long Island, New York. They are best known for their eclectic sampling, quirky lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap and alternative hip hop subgenres. The members are Posdnuos, Trugoy and Maseo. The three formed the group in high school and caught the attention of producer Prince Paul with a demo tape of the song "Plug Tunin'". With its playful wordplay, innovative sampling, and witty skits, the band's debut album, 3 Feet High and Rising, has been called "a hip hop masterpiece."
Erica Abi Wright, known professionally as Erykah Badu, is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and actress. Influenced by R&B, 1970s soul, and 1980s hip hop, Badu became associated with the neo soul subgenre in the 1990s and 2000s along with artists such as D'Angelo and Maxwell. She has been called the Queen of Neo soul. Badu's career began after she opened a show for D'Angelo in 1994 in Fort Worth; record label executive Kedar Massenburg was highly impressed with her performance and signed her to Kedar Entertainment. Her first album, Baduizm, was released in February 1997. It spawned four singles: "On & On", "Appletree", "Next Lifetime" and "Otherside of the Game". The album was certified triple Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Her first live album, Live, was released in November 1997 and was certified double Platinum by the RIAA.
Dennis Coles, better known by his stage name Ghostface Killah, is an American rapper, songwriter and actor and lead member of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan. After the group achieved breakthrough success in the aftermath of Enter the Wu-Tang , the members went on to pursue solo careers to varying levels of success. Ghostface Killah debuted his solo career with Ironman, which was well received by music critics, in 1996. He has enjoyed continued success in the years that have followed, releasing critically acclaimed albums such as Supreme Clientele (2000) and Fishscale (2006). His stage name was taken from one of the characters in the 1979 kung fu film Mystery of Chessboxing. He is the founder of his own record label, Starks Enterprises.
Neo soul is a genre of popular music. As a term, it was coined by music industry entrepreneur Kedar Massenburg during the late 1990s to market and describe a style of music that emerged from soul and contemporary R&B. Heavily based in soul music, neo soul is distinguished by a less conventional sound than its contemporary R&B counterpart, with incorporated elements ranging from funk, jazz fusion, hip hop, and African music to pop, rock, and electronic music. It has been noted by music writers for its traditional R&B influences, conscious-driven lyrics, and strong female presence.
Me Against the World is the third studio album by American rapper 2Pac, released on March 14, 1995, by Interscope Records and Jive Records. Drawing lyrical inspiration from his impending prison sentence, troubles with the police, and poverty, the album is described as being 2Pac's most introspective album. According to 2Pac, Me Against the World was made to show the hip hop audience his respect for the art form. Lyrically, he intentionally tried to make the album more personal and reflective than his previous efforts. The musical production on the album was considered by several music critics to be the best on any of his albums up to that point in his career.
The Black Keys are an American rock band formed in Akron, Ohio, in 2001. The group consists of Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney (drums). The duo began as an independent act, recording music in basements and self-producing their records, before they eventually emerged as one of the most popular garage rock artists during a second wave of the genre's revival in the 2000s. The band's raw blues rock sound draws heavily from Auerbach's blues influences, including Junior Kimbrough, R.L. Burnside, Howlin' Wolf, and Robert Johnson.
Lawrence Muggerud, professionally known by his stage name DJ Muggs, is an American DJ, audio engineer and record producer. He is a member of Cypress Hill, a member of the trip hop band Cross My Heart Hope To Die and the leader of hip hop and art collective Soul Assassins.
Raphael Saadiq is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer. He rose to fame as a member of the multiplatinum group Tony! Toni! Toné! In addition to his solo and group career, he has also produced songs for such artists as Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, Stevie Wonder, Joss Stone, D'Angelo, TLC, En Vogue, Kelis, Mary J. Blige, Ledisi, Whitney Houston, Solange Knowles and John Legend. Music critic Robert Christgau has called Saadiq the "preeminent R&B artist of the '90s".
Angela Laverne Brown known professionally as Angie Stone, is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. She rose to fame in the late 1970s as member of the hip hop trio The Sequence. Soon after, Stone began working with futuristic rap group Mantronix and singer Lenny Kravitz. In the early 1990s, she became a member of the R&B trio Vertical Hold. In 1999, Stone released her solo debut Black Diamond on Arista Records, which was certified gold and spawned the R&B number-one hit "No More Rain ". After transitioning to J Records, she released another gold-seller, Mahogany Soul (2001), which included the hit single "Wish I Didn't Miss You", followed by Stone Love (2004) and The Art of Love & War (2007), her first number-one album on the US Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.
The Emotions are an American soul/R&B vocal group from Chicago. The group started out in gospel music but transitioned into R&B and disco music. The Emotions were named by VH1 as one of the 18 most influential girl groups of all time.
Brown Sugar is the debut studio album by American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist D'Angelo, released on July 3, 1995, through EMI. The album was recorded during 1994 and 1995 in sessions at Battery Studios and RPM Studios in New York City and at the Pookie Lab in Sacramento. Its production, instrumentation, arrangements, and songwriting were primarily handled by D'Angelo, who employed both vintage recording equipment and modern electronic devices. The songs feature earnest lyrics about love and romance, set against a fusion of contemporary R&B and traditional soul music with elements of funk, quiet storm, and hip hop music.
Gerald Maxwell Rivera, known mononymously as Maxwell, is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and multi-instrumentalist. Along with fellow musicians D'Angelo and Erykah Badu, Maxwell has been credited as an originator of the "neo soul" movement that rose to prominence during the late 1990s. He released his debut studio album Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite in 1996 to widespread critical acclaim and commercial success. The album was certified 2x Platinum and it was the first of four consecutive Platinum-selling studio albums. Maxwell released Embrya in 1998, Now in 2001 and BLACKsummers'night in 2009. BLACKsummers'night was nominated for 6 Grammy Awards, including Song of the Year for "Pretty Wings". Maxwell released his fifth studio album blackSUMMERS'night in 2016. He has won 3 Grammy Awards out of 13 nominations, 6 Soul Train Music Awards and 2 NAACP Image Awards. Maxwell was presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award for "his innovative contributions to the music industry as a singer, songwriter, and producer" by the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation and Congressional Black Caucus in 2019.
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The Soul of John Black Brings Songs of Truth http://www.americanbluesscene.com/2014/07/the-soul-of-john-black-brings-songs-of-truth/